


why aren’t you gone?

by WhyDontWeBegin



Series: As I Fall [4]
Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, F/M, Hurt No Comfort, Mentions of Death, Post-ARR, Set during the crystal tower timeline, This is indeed not the main focus of this series, but I love these two to death despite the severe problems they have, but there’s no actual mention of anything from it or the game, im not nice, nero is emotionally constipated because he’s so arrogant, or maybe because of, pre-heavensward, so no spoilers, winter just wants a hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-06
Updated: 2019-09-06
Packaged: 2020-10-11 10:08:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20544401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhyDontWeBegin/pseuds/WhyDontWeBegin
Summary: Nero and Winter have a talk.





	why aren’t you gone?

**Author's Note:**

> gonna be honest, this hurt me a little to write, but i do know how to fix their relationship maybe kinda sorta
> 
> It involves a near-death incident and angry winter, but not in the way you probably think-
> 
> Sadly, no good boi G’raha despite this being set during the Crystal Tower questline, my apologies, next time he’ll be there

“Nero.”

“Yes?”

Winter hesitated a moment before she sat up in his bed, looking over at the golden-haired engineer. He was hunched over a table in the admittedly shitty inn room, working on yet another little gadget, even with his limited resources. Seconds of silence dragged on to a full minute before he let out a low growl, set down his tools, and turned to look at her, brow furrowed in frustration. Winter squashed the impulse to get up and cross the small room to hold his face in her small hands.

“Are you going to just sit there and stare at me, or are you going to actually ask the question,” Nero said, looking utterly unamused but entirely resigned. Winter hesitated a moment, blue eyes flicking to the corner of the room.

“... I... what...”

“_Cassia__,_” Nero chided with a firm tone, and the way he said it (she liked to believe she really  had  heard the exasperated endearment as he spoke, too) sent a shiver down her spine even though she was Winter now. “You know I never liked it when you started hesitating.”

“... What are we, Nero?”

He paused, blinking dumbly a few times as his mind began to process her words. All at once, every triumph he’d shared with the (much) shorter Garlean came to mind, followed by the feeling of her in his arms, pressed against him. 

Nero realized he couldn’t remember the sound of her laughter or her smile and his heart skipped a beat. Oh, he remembered how she smirked when she successfully irritated him, or how she barked out a laugh when someone complained, but the little things, the memories he’d held closest to his heart, were faded. 

“... Nero?”

He hated how timid she sounded, how  small  she looked in this moment. Nero felt the smallest twinge of anxiety and quickly pushed it aside, remembering how the snow-haired woman had commanded respect in spite of- or possibly even  because of her height (or rather, lackthereof). And then he remembered how she’d disappeared in the wake of the Calamity like so many others, presumed dead.

Nero remembered how she’d stood in his way. Anguish, despair,  _anger_.  He scoffed, shaking his head with a smirk. “What are we?  _We_ are enemies,  _ Winter_.”

A knife to her heart. A knife to his. He spat the name and it burned like acid on his tongue. She stood and made for the door without a sound, biting her bottom lip.

“Fine then. If that’s what you want, that’s what we’ll be.”

He wished he hadn’t heard how her voice broke at the end of the sentence, hadn’t seen the tears that fell to the ground. He wished the slam of the door as she left would’ve spared him that. The knife twisted, but Nero grit his teeth, because it hurt too much to have her so close. It hurt too much because Cassia,  his Cassia, was gone. She was dead, because she  never would’ve stood in his way.

... Right?


End file.
